Crimes Against the Mantle
by Manamosy
Summary: The Forerunners Crimes against those who came before them.


**《The following is a data stream》**

**《Acquired translated by 7 BIAS》**

**《From the [Fundament]》**

_"I find myself trapped, trapped like a black-hole in gravity's pull. On the verge of technological transentience, Forerunners have been denied the greatest responsibility of all."_

**Stream-01**

_~Forerunner neural stream_

**(The Forerunner known as Guardian of Light)**

The three us, myself Guardian-of-Light, the Forerunner to my left, Dawn-to-Nebulas and the Forerunner in front of me; Greener-Finding. We are Builders, working in direct conjunction with the higher rates; the Warrior-Servants. We are working on the next step in Forerunner technology in hopes of propelling us into prosperity.

I float over and above Dawn. "How close are we? Have we tested the systems enough?"

"Billions of Forerunners have been working on this for the last twenty-thousand years, we cannot rush it now." Dawn watches the displays in front of him.

"The Domain gives us only so much information on Neural Physics, the Precursors only allow us to go so far in. They believe it isn't something we can comprehend yet."

I bring up the displays of the Simulacrum, a stream of information kept in a slip-space network, much like the Domain but more physical and only a tiny fraction of the size.

"Currently at seven-trillion simulations. The trans-dimensional rifts aren't staying integral, they keep appearing in locations that aren't on the conflux line." Greener-Finding nods. Shimmering light diffuses his movement as we float around each other trying to conduct our work. Dawn expresses concerns about how long we have been here, inside the Domain.

"Forerunners are not meant to be inside the Domain this long. We need to gather the data and return to contingent space before one of us is lost to the void."

His concerns are shared. Space-time is warping around us, mutating to try and compensate for our physical presence within the Domain.

"Sections of the Domain aren't opening, we need to trace the data streams back to their origin states."

If my face was not diffused by light, I'm sure the others could see my grimace. Dawn turns to a flashing display. "Haruspis is calling us, being in here conducting these simulations must be creating a lot of debt in reconciliation, we must exit before the Domain becomes inaccessible and we become part of the neural entropy." We all close our displays. The void around us now shimmering with information from an infinitely long stretch of time and space. We all focus our minds on re-amalgamating with our bodies in true space.

**Stream-02**

_~Human neural stream_

**(The Human known as Jonathian Tiberum)**

"Five of our Lords have been in the company of Precursors now for three hours. I hope what the Precursors have to say is good for us."

I'm standing in the bridge of a large space-faring vessel called the Utmos. At ninety-nine thousand metres long, it is one of our largest intergalactic transport ships, but still small in comparison to our largest frigates and battleships. "We owe an infinite amount of time to the Precursors, you know that. Besides, they only ever bring good news." My oldest friend Olfensen reassures me. We have spent nearly one million years in each others company.

"Of course, I understand that they are our creators. But things have been unsettled lately. The Forerunners are creating so much space-time debt conducting their scientific escapades, their blunt force reconciliation isn't smoothing over the acausal effects of their constant misuse of slip-space."

My worries are made evident with the sudden appearance of a Forerunner luxury ship only seventy-thousand kilometres down star from us. Their ships slicing through time and space with such ease. The slender shell around the ship with its one-hundred and twenty-thousand metres long brimming of Forerunner alloy, it outshines the Utmos easily in this empty star system.

"The Forerunners must be sharing my concern. With their five best warrior-servants in their with the Precursors, even after only three hours they must be concerned if they are to bring one of their best luxury ships, with their top council members no doubt." Myself and Olfensen are only present in this ship, our own council only concerned enough to send their two oldest members. Our ship anchored in space-time using ancient technology passed down to us from the Precursors. The gleaming white of the trans-dimensional portal to the place this grand meeting that has been persisting for three hours now. "Why here, why the Fundament of all the Precursor constructs? They have never allowed any life-form into the Fundament in times of past." I motion to the displays to zoom in on the Forerunner vessel. Olfensen responds with another question. "Why only five of each race, why not just relay what they want us to know through the neural network? These aren't things we're supposed to know yet, hence we are out here and not in there."

"You know my concern Olfensen. If they are passing on responsibility, then one race in their entirety has to accept that they are not worthy to acquire the Mantle. That is not something either us Humans or the Forerunner will take with grace. I know that we would eventually come to terms with the fact we aren't worthy, but the Forerunners..." As we discuss back and forth, the Forerunner ship pulls itself up and inline with us floating under the portal.

"We've been here three hours now, how long will they wait I wonder." My statement brings a frown to Olfensen's face. "The Forerunners have more patience for matters involving the Mantle, but their Warrior-servants sometimes prefer action over waiting. If they think there are matters for them to intervene, then they will." Olfensen's right, if the Forerunners fear losing the Responsibility of the Mantle to Humanity then they might intervene, even against the Precursors.

**Stream-03**

_~Forerunner Ancilla neural stream_

**(Ancilla identification: Permutation-Bias)**

"How may we serve you in this summon?" My user, the Forerunner I am equipped to, has been summoned by the Precursors to enter the most sacred construct that the Precursors have created. Just being here in such a sacred place makes my neural transmitters spark with joy, an emotion usual filtered out but today there is no way to block the enthusiasm that I have to be able to serve the Precursors. The Precursors are in every way our gods, our parents and the guiding light in the struggle to truly grasp the Mantle, they have built all that is known and they have held the Responsibility of the Mantle since the first formation of the galaxies. Their ways of communication are unlike any other life-form, their words pass into your mind like long forgotten memories.

"The time has come to acknowledge those who have served well. The Mantle of Responsibility can only be held by one and will only accept one. We have spent millions of millennia curating and building. Accelerating life through the tendrils of chaotic order in search of those who seek to climb to transentient nobility."

The Precursors voice echoes through my systems like a calming melody. Every word expressed in full without effort.

"In Fundament you are the same, but space and time has challenged you and has shown the differences in your natures"

The Precursors speak to the five Forerunner Warrior-Servants and five Human Lord of Admiral ranks. Very few have seen the Precursors in their physical form. Even in here, there are so many Precursors, almost all we can't see, but we know they're there. Three Precursors in their physical forms stand before us, ready to judge us either worthy, or not. To uphold the Mantle of Responsibility.

"A time has come for us to go out into the greater Universe and start a new, under the governance of the Mantle. The chosen will carry on our work here, guided by the Mantle and the knowledge you have gained, we have faith in the Humans, you are our prodigy, you will carry the Mantle of Responsibility until your transentience, in that time you will be able to pass the responsibility once again."

A sudden and immense silence bared down on the Fundament, every Precursor watching through transentient space, waiting, watching. The Humans began to speak amongst their internal monitors, but the Forerunners, my masters, they stood in silence. They stood for what felt like a century but in seconds they had communicated just enough through body language to show what move they had planned. The Precursors no doubt expecting retaliation, read them and knew what they had to do. Time and space began warping around us, my sensors detected that neural physical space was mutating, the Warrior-Servants received this information instantaneously. In self defence the Precursors were trying to shift us out of the construct, but the Forerunners engaged their technology against the neurologically physical events such that the Precursors would use. The Humans had already been shifted out into normal space, but the Forerunners stood their ground, ships constituting around them; they were getting ready for war. But it never became a war, it was slaughter. The Precursors frozen in awe of the incomprehensible rage that had been directed toward them. Acausal weapons of unimaginable power began slicing and warping all of space-time, even within this construct the weapons had the capacity to dematerialise Precursors, breaking down neural physics at its core, technology built specifically to destroy Precursors. The Forerunners had contingent plans for such a possibility, and they were enacting exactly what they had planned.

The Precursors made no attempt to fight back, no indestructible walls, no neurological weapons. The Precursors did not believe in fighting, they never thought in their entire history that their own creations would attack them.

**Stream-04**

_~Forerunner neural stream_

**(The Forerunner known as Guardian of Light)**

"We've only just merged back into our bodies and a tremendous amount of data is entering the Domain"

Dawn-to-Nebulas was the first to exit the Domain itself and access it again through Haruspis. The information came through to us from the Domain, the information was cryptic but we knew what was happening.

_"/WARNING! CATASTROPHIC EVENT/"_

We all knew about the meeting with the Precursors, it didn't take much time to realise that it's likely there was an imminent war, but we thought it was against the Humans. "We need to report our findings to high council, and find out what's happening." I try my best to not assume the worst, Warrior-Servants are well known to lose their tempers, if the Humans were chosen to hold responsibility for the Mantle then it would be likely that the Forerunners would seek some sort of vengeance. Greener-Finding is present soon enough and has already accessed the streams of emergency networks. "We are under attack" That much was already obvious. "Did the Humans strike first?" I chirped out. But Greener's face twisted as if in agony, he struggled to tell us what the networks were communicating. "It's not the Humans, it's the Precursors; they're attacking us. They seek to destroy us" This travesty was mockery of the Mantle's fundamental basis, how could our creators go against their greatest discovery, the universes greatest law. "Information spreads of Forerunners fighting back with great force, and succeeding. Contingencies were put in place for such a possible event and now we have the capabilities to defend ourselves against the Precursors. This immense crime against the Mantle has given providence to remove Precursors from the galaxy for their crimes."

Fight against our creators, those who had made us almost a billion years ago, how could we?

**Stream-05**

_~Human neural stream_

**(The Human known as Jonathian Tiberum)**

We sit here still, waiting outside the portal to the Precursor construct; the Fundament. The portal, a white disc that just seems to float there only a few hundred miles above the planet below. "How long have the Precursors held this planet here?" I ask. Olfensen quickly replies. "Long before me and you. The planet is seven-billion years old but the Precursors moved it here nine-hundred million years ago"

The Precursors still allowed other lifeforms to use the planet for study but we could not build on it or mine it for resources. From what I remember, the Precursors moved this planet from their home galaxy, the Large Magellanic Cloud; one-hundred and sixty-three thousand light-years away. Study of the planet has not given much evidence as to the origins of the Precursors, but we know this is our origin, the Fundament is the origin to all sentient life in this galaxy. "Moving planets is quite trivial, especially for the Precursors. Data streams in the Domain show fragments of information about the Precursors moving the Milky Way galaxy billions of years ago." Surprisingly in all my time, I had not heard about this. "Moved it from where? Why would they move an entire galaxy?" Interrupting our deep discussion, the ship warns us of local neural physical ruptures. The five Lords from within the construct appeared only a hundred kilometres from us in the direction of the portal, safely inside their stasis shields floating towards us. The ship automatically jumped closer to their location to pick them up. Shortly after, the Forerunner ship down star began moving up towards the portal. Information came in through the ships systems from the Domain about conflict between Forerunners and Precursors within the Fundament. "What! How can this be happening?"

Myself and Olfensen stand silent until the ship systems relay communication to the Lords now in the loading bay. "The Forerunners attacked, they seek to claim the Mantle by force. They must be stopped." One of the Lords said. Our worst fears have come true. At first I was calm thinking how the Precursors could easily defend themselves against the Forerunners but as another Lord spoke... "The Forerunners have produced weapons that can destroy the Precursors. The Precursors pushed us out of the Fundament but the Forerunners have somehow aloud themselves to stay inside. I'm sure high command can see what's happening through the Domain." In that minute five Forerunners appeared outside the Fundament in their small personal ships. They fly towards the nearby Forerunner luxury ship which is now entering slip-space and all six leave the star-system, supposedly to their own controlled space at the Orion complex.

The white portal to the Fundament closes and simultaneously we jump back to our capital world of Charum Hakkor. Hundreds of thousands of battle ready ships are lined up all around the star system. We know of the coming storm, that the Forerunners are plotting to end the Precursors; and possibly Humanity. We know that we must help the Precursors but information in the Domain showed that the Precursors weren't fighting back, in fact they were allowing the Forerunners to destroy them; why would they do that? The Forerunners fleets outnumbered us one-thousand to one, and they are far more technologically superior, but we had to fight, not only to save the Precursors but also to save ourselves.

**Stream-06**

_~Forerunner neural stream_

**(The Forerunner known as Exitium-Didactum)**

The Humans have been fighting back, they are incredibly powerful even with their little numbers and lowly technology. Their downfall is their attempt to protect the Precursors. The only Human fleets left now protect their home star system where their capital world is, Charum Hakkor. Their numbers are declining quickly, only one-hundred million of their frigates and battleships left to fend us off.

"Shall we end this quickly, we must still plan for the pursuit of the Precursors that fled the galaxy." I am not one to rush something but our main objective is to destroy the Precursors before they gain more power and destroy us, the Humans are just another disruption in the great journey to hold the Mantle of Responsibility. The Human ships now already jumping into slip-space in a manoeuvre to fight us from slip-space. Both the Forerunners and Humans have the ability to fire weapons into and out of slip-space, this makes combat incredibly fast paced and destructive. Human frigates, small and nimble but incredibly powerful ships begin carving away Forerunner fleet numbers. The Humans have the upper-hand this close to their capital, they have unprecedented control over slip-space in this region. We cannot see their ships while they're in slip-space, but they can see ours in normal space. Our only advantage is the new technology recently applied to a multitude of our fleets, neural physical weapons; they cut through space and time to allow us to disassemble their ships no matter what space they're in. The Humans bring forth their battleships for one final effort. A small but very heavily weaponised Human transport ship they call the Utmos leads the charge and puts up an incredible fight, destroying one-hundred and seventeen Forerunner battle-cruisers. I engage the ship myself, we jump in and out of slip-space in a race for that perfect shot. Within slip-space I am able to hit the aft of the ship near where what must be the slip-space drive. The ship tears itself apart as it exits slip-space into normal space. My finest enemy in their final fight. The battle lasts thirty-six minutes, with the capital planet surrounded; the remaining Humans surrender. They have been charged with crimes against the Mantle and are to be devolved stripped of their technology. Now we seek to destroy the Precursors, once and for all.

**Stream-07**

_~Forerunner Ancilla neural stream_

**(Ancilla identification: Permutation-Bias)**

"My my, the Humans put up a good fight, they have eradicated half of the Forerunner fleets with a fleet not even one percentage the size. If the Precursors put up half as good a fight, we would not exist anymore." I am all too honest with my masters. They do not always enjoy the information I have for them. "An ancilla should know when to bury information, these events shall not be recorded." For the first time, I go against my masters wishes. I am Permutation-Bias and I exist to record. The Domain is now inaccessible and all information regarding the events that follow are blocked by all but the highest level of Ancilla. When desperate, Forerunners move fast, very fast. They only take seven years to train more Warrior-Servants and build more ships with neural physical weapons. I am part of a scouting group designated to go ahead and jump to the Tarantula Nebula in the Large Magellanic Cloud where it's thought the Precursors have hidden themselves to regain their power. We must get their and eradicate the Precursors before they eradicate us, but I know the truth. We know very little about this other galaxy, only that the Precursors have great control their, with their star-roads and trans-dimensional constructs. Neural physics is an unbounded force that propagates the entire universe and the Precursors seem to have unbound control over it. Destroying them once and for all will be a difficult task. I calculate a two percent chance that we will succeed in completely destroying the Precursors, they are so capable of hiding in places we cannot see. They can travel infinitely larger distances with infinitely more speed. Those who seek to end the Precursors will most likely not return from their great journey into the unknown.

Our scouting unit embark into the Large Magellanic Cloud. Many ships, all tasked with the objective to find where the Precursors are heading, and to set up slip-space lines for the larger fleet to trace and follow. We place Causal-reconciliation spheres one-hundred and fifty-five thousand lights-years outside of the Milky Way, only eight-thousand light-years away from the edge of the Tarantula Nebula. These acausal super-structures are atomically perfect spheres that have a quantum refractive state that allows for huge quantities of mass to jump huge distances through slip-space, the effects of which would warp space-time and cause catastrophic events in the continuum without these mirrored objects. The builders really show off their vast knowledge of the universe when they construct such objects.

"The placement of the spheres is very important, they cannot be anchored to close to a planet due to the effects of gravity. Catastrophic anomalies can occur in the quantum fabric which can cause such events as, transposition and disappearance of planetary mass." I calculate and assess for the best placement of the spheres. We place them accordingly throughout the Nebula.

Our sensors detect neural physical activity within the Nebula, we know where they are and now we are ready.

The entire Forerunner fleet, now up to seven billion ships, the largest; over one-thousand kilometres long, begins making the one-hundred and fifty-five thousand light-year journey to the Large Magellanic Cloud. The Causal-reconciliation Spheres already reflect the image of an incomprehensible mass of ships entering the Nebula and shortly there after; the ships begin exiting slip-space in the designated location around the spheres. The quantum foam that allows such events as slip-space is different in this galaxy, the foam is more compatible with neural physic, but is now having to mutate to compensate for the massive blunt slip-space jump of trillions of tons of mass. It takes no more than seven seconds for the entire Forerunner fleet to exit slip-space in the Tarantula Nebula. The Casual-Reconciliation Spheres seemingly vibrating at the sudden and immense change of mass in this region. A succession of rapid flashes from the spheres, reflecting only the black void and the sparks of light from our tremendous blunt force entry into this galaxy. Only a few minutes for space-time to smooth over, the localised quantum fabric already mutating for neural physics. We may have taken on more than we can grasp.

"The Precursors are backed against a wall. They will have no choice here but to fight back, or perish. We will expect the awesome power of their full force." The Didact Exitium-Didactum has been the commander of the Forerunners Warrior-Servants for the last million years, no entity has more knowledge of war, nor has he lost a war. But the Forerunners will truly test themselves with this one final effort.

It doesn't take more than a few hours of the fleets entry into this galaxy before the Precursors begin their desperate attempt to fight back. Their star roads lashing out at nearly the speed of light, breaking through ship after ship, only to be destroyed by the next line of anti-neural ship weapons. The streaks of full spectrum piercing through the unbending filaments of the star roads internal structure. Entire constructs phasing in and out of existence in an attempt to capture and destroy large waves of Forerunner ships.

"The Precursors are throwing every physical event our way in an attempt to stop us. I think they are afraid; for the very first time." The Didact is vicious. He will stop at nothing to see the Precursors extinct. Justified by a disillusioned perception that the Mantle allows such a crime against those who have sinned in the eyes of the Mantle. Even if those sinned are the Precursors. The creators of nearly every life-form in the Milky Way. How the Forerunners could take action against the Precursors so blindly, eludes me to this day. The Precursors are putting up a good fight, but not good enough. As huge ships jump in and out of slip-space, firing weapons of massive chaos, neural physical structures collapsing around the system, entire constructs collapsed into black-holes as they falter under the full force of the Forerunners. Such cataclysm only paralleled by galactic collapse. The last stand for the Precursors, a white disc floating a few hundred miles over a floral planet. Their final construct, only a few million Forerunner ships left, this is the final hour. The white disc is a portal into a construct much like the Fundament, whether it was the same place as the one in the Milky Way is still a mystery to me, but this was no doubt a Fundament. I am amongst one of the last Forerunner ships to enter the construct. The Precursors put up their best fight yet, they will not let themselves perish. I did not know then, but for the entire battle they were just biding time whilst some of the Precursors go into hiding, jumping to different galaxies or laying in an undiscovered dimension for later revival. The last of the Forerunners exit the Fundament, records show traces that those last Forerunners stayed in the galaxy on a nearly barren planet, as a monument to all their sins. The last of my neural streams were lost in the Fundament, so this is where I stayed; to show the universe what sins may come and how the Mantle is everlasting in this chaotic universe.


End file.
